#BlackStormtrooper
Type: Campaign,
Tags: star wars, trailer, racism, black stormtrooper, matthewwilkes, virus_698,
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Overview • Background • Developments • Search Interest • External References • |
Overview
#BlackStormtrooper is a hashtag associated with online backlash surrounding British actor John Boyega’s appearance as a Stormtrooper soldier in the teaser trailer for the 2015 science fiction film Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Background
On November 28th, 2014, a teaser trailer for the film Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released on the Movieclips Trailers YouTube channel (shown below). The trailer opens with a shot of the fictional desert planet Tatooine, where a Stormtrooper (played by Boyega) suddenly pops into frame from below.
Developments
Online Reaction
That day, Twitter users began commenting on Boyega's appearance with the hashtag #BlackStormtrooper,[1] some of which joked about his race or questioned it's canonical validity in the Star Wars universe (shown below).
![40b.png Fish @fishpool86 * Follow l thought all storm troopers were clones of Jango Fett #BlackStormTrooper ? わ ★ RETWEET FAVORITES 3 11:36 AM- 28 Nov 2014](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/874/427/40b.png)
![3c8.png Follow Robert Hernandez @webiournalist #BlackStormTrooper better not die first, or I am going to be p-----. わ ★ RETWEETS FAVORITES 37 37 11:44 AM- 28 Nov 2014](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/874/428/3c8.png)
Also on November 28th, Redditor MatthewWilkes submitted a screen captured image of Boyega from the trailer titled "We ain't found shit!", in reference to a scene featuring an African American stormtrooper in the 1987 comedy film Spaceballs. In less than a week, the post gathered more than 4,200 votes (84% upvoted) on the /r/funny[4] subreddit. Meanwhile, in a comment thread about the trailer on the /r/videos[5] subreddit, Redditors discussed Boyega's appearance in the film. On the following day, IGN Forums[3] member Virus_698 submitted a thread titled "So why is there a black stormtrooper in the new Star Wars movie?"
Boyega's Response
On November 29th, Boyega posted a message on Instagram[2] giving thanks to his fans, along with a statement for certain readers to "Get used to it" (shown below). Within one week, the post gained over 4,700 likes and 690 comments.
![a06.png Thank you for all the love and support! The fan mail and fan art has added to my joy! Isn't it crazy that Star Wars is actually happening? I'm in the movie but as a star wars fan l am very excited! A year is a long time but it will be worth the wait. To whom it may concern... Get used to it. :) Follow jboyega 4 days ago With love xxx groonk, livinginchrist, theduke11b and 4.7k others like this](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/874/433/a06.png)
News Media Coverage
In the coming days, several news sites published articles about the Internet response to Boyega, including The Daily Dot,[6] The Christian Science Monitor,[7] The Atlantic,[8] CNN[9] and the New York Daily News.[10]
Search Interest
External References
[1] Twitter – #BlackStormtrooper
[3] IGN Forums – So why is there a black storm trooper in the new Star Wars movie?
[4] Reddit – We aint found shit
[5] Reddit – black stormtrooper
[6] The Daily Dot – The racist #blackstormtrooper backlash
[7] Christian Science Monitor – A Black Stormtrooper?
[8] The Atlantic – Of Course There Are Black Stormtroopers
[9] CNN – Star Wars Actor John Boyega Takes Aim
[10] NY Daily News – John Boyega star of Star Wars
Entry Editors ( 5 )
Tags: star wars, trailer, racism, black stormtrooper, matthewwilkes, virus_698,
Comments ( 138 )
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